For those unfamiliar with the differences in Geography between Qatar and Oman will notice already today that there is some hills to negotiate in the deserts! Not that the gradual mid stage 1.2% maximum climbing will bother anyone today. Today looks likely to end in a sprint and with winds low today it is hard to imagine a break having much of a chance.
The favourites for the sprint are: Jurgen Roelandts Juan Van Heerden Óscar Guerao Cameron Meyer Jaime Alberto Castañeda Anthony Lavoine Matt Rowe
and Mathieu Drujon
However it is the brightly coloured Webeffect crew that lead things out from the gun into the desert.
It's a good job most of the spectators have bought their sunglasses, but don't let the garish kit fool you folks Webeffect have some highly effective riders in their roster. Not really challengers for this race you'd imagine with the likes of Danielson and Rodrigues their best climbers. It will be at the Giro later this year that the expectations are on them with Emmanuelle Sella the antepost favourite for that event. Also here keep an eye on Irani rider Behnam Khalilikhosroshani, with Iran and Oman having long historical and political ties he is the closest to a home star.
It is a matter of meters before we get our first attack and it is one of ProTour's new guns Milka Vittel who launch a rider.
Maxime Bouet
The decent French time trialler and rouler has got things going here for Milka, another like Webeffect with perhaps limited overall hopes with the likes of Rohregger. They have sprinter Vanderaerden here though the sprinting competition does look tough here in Oman.
After a short while he is joined by:
Kristof Goddaert Sebastian Lang Niels Scheunemann Gregor Gazvoda Gediminas Bagdonas
then three more
Michael Schär (Nestle) Marcel Barth Ethan Weiss
A lot of teams are desperate to get men in the break here as we get four more:
Rafaâ Chtioui Imanol Erviti Juan-Antonio Flecha Benoît Vaugrenard
and then finally three guys:
It makes a total of 16 riders away here and a couple of teams have more than one rider with Team Spyker Cars and Warner Brothers having two riders apiece. The organisation in the breakaway as you'd expect of a large group of eclectic riders is low and three riders push on from this.
Benoît Vaugrenard Gediminas Bagdonas Ethan Weiss
These three try to get things moving properly and in Vaugranard they have a rider who seems to excel at this sort of activity. Notable in last years Giro for his ability to get into breakaways and occasionally getting them to succeed. Back in the pack a team in blue are most displeased with the amount of riders in the breakaway.
It's: Morgan Kneisky
who is leading the chase and the powerful Carmeuse rouler is proving the death knell for the 16 men ahead including the three that have pushed on. Does this dampen the attacking spirits of the riders in the pack, no way!
It's bedlam as we get another huge group of 18 riders form at the front as the result of another flurry of attacks. Some of the riders from before have made the move, but others have now joined in this frenzy. The names in full:
Festina notably getting three riders up into this break. Certainly they look set to be high flyers this year, they looking perhaps to rip this thing apart. But even with three riders there the front group are struggling to get organised. Two more riders: Bradley Wiggins
and Yoann Offredo
attack out of the peleton to try and join up with the group.
Things are still in a state of flux at the first sprint and Vesuvio's Barth manages to edge out UBS's Chtioui.
It is Bagdonas of Bacardi who outsprints Spykers Scheunemann for third place, though these primes are probably less vital as they are in Qatar with the later stages parcours likely to split things up more decisively.
These four riders by going up the road begin to carve out a little gap and once they are joined by Wiggins and Partridge they begin to get up to a minute on the other 14 chasers. The peleton once catching the 14 decide that this is the right combination and sit up.
So these six settle in and begin to work together nicely, British all rounder Rob Partridge is enjoying this opportunity at a protour race. Eager to take something for his Rapha Condor - Qhubeka mob he craftely gets a bit of a jump on the lazy Bagdonas of Bacardi for the second sprint.
But powerhouse Vesuvio man Barth just powers inside Bacardi's Lithuanian and eases past Partridge to take his second sprint prime.
Partridge is second ahead of Bagdonas as the slight incline gives way to a slight descent. The gap here to the pack has risen to four minutes, but the break's chances take a sharp downturn when Team B&O start the chase very early on.
B&O may fancy that they have one of the strong favourites for this race in Pluchkin a rider who finished high up in the Tour last year. You fancy that this young team will need every point they can get this year, but this seems a strange move today. They power back and catch the breakaway with more than 25km to go. This only now yields to more attacks and a far more dangerous move goes clear.
The three man counter consists of: Koen De Kort Andrew Tennant
and
Jacob Fiedler(Nestle)
We now have rain which rare as it is in the desert is most likely to fall in Oman in the months of January and February. We don't have a lot of wind so this looks set to remain for the rest of the stage.
The pack having reeled in a number of breakaways already are a little reluctant to commit to the chase and the gap to the threesome is over a minute with 20km to go. The sprinters teams do realise the dangers however and Wikipedia, Wiggle, Pendletons and Carmeuse chase this.
It is finally Wiggle's long suffering domestique Tom Diggle who reals the dangerous threesome in with 12km to go.
So with breaks chased down all day the peleton's will, the sprint will begin and three teams look to have given a sprint train a go in Wiggle, Wikipedia and Carmuese.
The front leading Wiggle train is: Timofrey Kritskiy, Ian Bibby and Matt Rowe
Followed by: Michael Vanderaerden Jaime Alberto Castañeda Cameron Meyer
The Carmuese train trying to get up the right side of Wiggle is: Sven Vandousselaere, Alexandre Aulas and Jurgen Roelandts
Followed by: Anthony Lavoine Martin Pedersen Mathieu Drujon Óscar Guerao Cherif Abdallah
Not quite sure what Wikipedia are up to for the moment they have: Danny Pate and Jimmy Casper up there buzzing around.
Carmuese look to challenge the Wiggle train as they start to move up the right side of them and with 3km to go they have improved Roelandts chances.
Behind here the Wikipedia boys are finally sorting themselves out with Farrar and Van Heerden hooking up to Caspar's back wheel as Pate now disappears. They are giving themsleves a lot to do with 2500m to go.
Caspar looks to pull Van Heerden/Farrar up on the left hand side of Wiggle and as we get into the last 2 clicks the first lead outs of all three trains pull away.
Not much change here for Wiggle and Carmuese with Bibby (for Wiggle) and Aulas (for Carmuese) really unable to keep the far quicker Farrar from moving up. The riders at the back of the Carmuese train are realising they have to make their move as do the other followers and as we approach the kite they realise they have to come around.
Space looks tight for these followers with Castanada (on the Wiggle train) and Pederson/Drujon (on the Carmuese train) look like they could be boxed. Guerao is moving left and keeps moving all the way to the far left of the Wikipedia train, though is moving fastest of all. Van Heerden meanwhile having been led into contention from nowehere is first to move out from a teammates lead out with 900m left.
Cam Meyer (Sony) and Vanderaerden (Milka) have made telling moves through the middle with Roelandts and Rowe needing to squeeze themselves through now. Van Heerden has clear road and is looking to find his full speed, Meyer though is really motoring.
500m to go:
Van Heerden seems to be stuck at the same speed as Meyer, his only hope is that the Australian fades. Matt Rowe is hooked behind Meyer also banking on a loss of speed from Meyer with Roelandts now slowly overtaking Vanderaerden. Guerao now having got some open space is looking to get through on the far right.
Rowe, Guerao, Van Heerden and Roelandts strain to try and get on terms with Meyer down the final half a kilometer.
250m to go:
Meyer grits his teeth he has gone early and is desperately trying to hold his form as he comes under pressure from either side. The crowd in Oman are being treated to a cracking sprint here.
The line just comes in time for the Sony rider with a photo finish for second between Guerao and Rowe, likewise for 4th between Roelandts and Van Heerden.
Meyer raises his hands feeling that this is a bit of a breakthrough victory, though to the peleton this is an all too familiar sight from 2011.
Judges have awarded Guerao the second place, he was certainly the fastest of the finishers. Rowe is third which is a pretty good result for him having been led out so superbly, Roelandts left things a little late in 4th and Van Heerden clearly was a bit burned having to come from so far. Cafe de Colombia take 6th with Castanada, Lavoine 7th, Drujon 8th, Pederson 9th and Vanderaerden having faded in the last to 10th.
